Shadow Hands
by Kitsune Swift
Summary: Chpt 8; "Peach was smiling at her softly, but that same worried glimmer was present in her blue eyes as it was in Mario's." ZelXPit Pairing.
1. It Begins with a Bang

It was quite windy that night.

The blowing wind made a deafening rumble as it hit the dark walls of the mansion. The halls inside were dark, lit only by a few flame torches here and there. Many of those who lived inside had made their way to bed, the wind causing too much noise to carry normal volume conversation. Others relaxed by fires or read books.

Pit made his way back to his room, tired from training and the endless flight race he shared with Metanight. He'd only just got done after starting at 12:30 in the afternoon, and it was currently 11:22 in the evening.

Pit yawned. He was so tired; everything in his sight was blurry. And though he was happy that he'd gotten so much done today, he was a bit irked that Metanight had kept up throughout the race. His training had made his muscles sore as well, making his trek tough as he winced here and there. He sighed when he finally found himself in front of his door.

A noise caught his attention from inside, and he froze for a moment before narrowing his eyes. He opened his door cautiously; looking around to make sure no one was in there. Seeing no one, he moved quickly to various places he knew would be good spots to hide, making sure no one was in them. Again he saw no one.

Silently, he sat down on his bed, eyes wide and alert. Nothing was around him, but he couldn't hide the suspicion in his demeanor. Though the silence called to his tired body and soon he was fast asleep, his wings spread out behind him and hair sticking at strange angles.

Zelda was strolling to her own room, having finished reading the 104 chapter book she'd started two weeks before. She wasn't very happy with the ending, which left the reader wanting to know what happened. She also knew there was no hope of a sequel, as the book had been written twenty years before that.

Things had been routine recently; everyone doing basically the same things over and over to keep themselves busy. Which gave Zelda the chance to read her book, but now she was thinking about how bored she was.

As she walked, she thought about her home in Hyrule, and how she missed sitting in the gardens. But then she reminded herself that she was bored there as well, which had lead her to coming here. Link then entered her mind.

She sighed as her mind drifted to her feelings for him. She loved him; everything about him. Except the little fact that he didn't feel that way for her. Young Link did, and made it well known however, always clambering in her lap and flirting shamelessly. The older Link just didn't feel the same, and he told her that when she tried to instigate a relationship with him one recent night.

"I'm sorry Zel… You're… my best friend. In fact, you're my sister. I will save you whenever you need, and I'd do anything for you… But I'm sorry… I just… Don't feel romantically involved."

His words had been broken, and stabbed her with their sharp meanings like glass. She had cried herself to sleep that night and had not done anything the day after. But she steeled herself and moved on as best as she could, avoiding Link as much as she could until her pride healed.

So, she started reading that book, which was sappy and lovey-dovey and romantic and sweet and she wished it was her own life. The ending really annoyed her, because the couple talked to each other, and he proposed. After that, nothing was there.

She sighed as she wished she could be with her hero… every night, sleep in his arms and look into his eyes every moment that passed and lose herself. She had to shake herself, knowing she was sounding like an angsty teenager rather than the princess of a prestigious land. But really, she couldn't help it at all. She couldn't tell her heart "No" to the way it felt towards him…

Stopping, Zelda turned and looked across the hall at Links room. He was right across from her, next to Pit and Sonic. She was next to Peach and Samus, herself. The hall seemed darker than normal though, and her nerves were set on edge as she tried to sense anything amiss in the area. A dark aura surrounded the hall for seemingly no reason and she felt nervous as she glanced around.

She gasped when a figure in white was suddenly thrown through the door leading to Pit's room. Pit groaned as he sat up, trying to regain his senses. Zelda could only look at the scratch on the angel's face, blood dripping carelessly from the wound, and his wings, which turned pink in some spots. She quickly moved toward him to make sure he was ok.

A loud roar made them both jump, looking toward Pit's room, where a dark shadow was lurking. The thing looked like billowing smoke was its entire substance, with glowing purple eyes and hard, white claws on what looked like arms of sludge. It looked quietly at them, before what looked like sharp teeth made themselves known and it jumped at them.

Zelda vaguely wondered why no one was coming to see what the noise was, as the roaring was loud enough to wake the entire mansion filled with stubborn sleepers. Yet no one emerged into the corridor, nor did they run in from various places to help.

It was only her and the angel.

"Pit! What is this thing!?" she exclaimed to the angel who stood quickly to block the attack coming. His bow deflected the claws trying to embed within him, and threw a good spin attack to make it back off. He threw a confused look to her as if to say "Like I have any idea!?" and he attacked the thing in return.

Zelda turned inward, "Sheik! Can you help Pit? That thing looks dangerous!" she said in her mind to the other in her body. Sheik however, seemed unresponsive, forcing her to believe something strange was happening. 'Not even Sheik is coming to our aide… What is going on here!?'

Her hands took a blue-ish glow as she focused her magic, wondering if anything would affect the smoky creature. As Pit jumped away, she threw forth a powerful blast of energy, sending the creature back into the room. It emerged a second later however, and threw its own burst of red energy toward her.

She brought up a shield quickly and watched in amazement as her shield disappeared easily. Zelda jumped away to avoid being hit by another blast, and she saw Pit do the same. 'This thing isn't going to stop easily… What do we do?' she thought as she readied another shot of her energy. A sudden ache on her left arm and the warm sensation running down it let her know she'd been hit by something, and her arm was now unresponsive as she jumped away over and over.

Pit suddenly pushed her backward, and Zelda found herself hitting the floor roughly. Looking up, she watched the angel take a dark energy blast. But instead of leaving a wound, the darkness went through him, and he screamed at the feeling. The momentum of the shot threw him back, making him slam into the wall, his head bouncing slightly, and slump to the floor.

The shadow creature made what looked like a smirk before making a screeching sound and lunging at Zelda. Zelda in turn mustered what she could of light energy and sent it forward, the creature and the light colliding half way. Stopping, the shadowy thing screamed itself before turning into Pit's room and exiting through the window.

Shocked and exhausted, Zelda collapsed.

Zelda jerked awake at the feeling of a hand on hers and a hug around her shoulders. "Gah!" she exclaimed, throwing the attachment off of her. Young Link jumped to the ground quickly to avoid being thrown to the wall.

"Easy Zel! It's just us!" Link's voice said quickly, helping the younger one back onto the bed. Zelda gaped at them before rushing into apology. Link held up a hand before looking concerned.

"What happened Zelda?" he asked.

For a moment, she herself was confused. The room was white and smelled of sterile surfaces, and she realized she was in the infirmary. Her eyes widened as she looked at Link, who sat straight, not liking the look in the princess's eyes.

"Where's Pit?" she asked loudly, looking around. Young Link gave a funny look.

"He's in another room," Link said carefully.

"Is he alright?"

Young Link scoffed with a smirk on his face, "You kicked the shit out of him."

Zelda's eyes widened even more. She hadn't touched the angel! "What do you mean?"

Link answered, "We found you both out in the hall after we heard a window break. You guys had quite the scuffle eh? What happened?"

"What!? I never touched him! That thing attacked him!" Zelda exclaimed, not believing they could think she and Pit had fought in the hall. Both Links gave a confused look.

"That shadow thing! It attacked us! Wait… You didn't hear anything before the window breaking?" Zelda asked quickly.

'Zelda? What shadow thing are you talking about?' Sheik asked in her mind. That confirmed her thoughts. The shadow either did something to affect the others. Or maybe only the two of them.

Perhaps it was only meant for Pit… but she'd been in the right place to be affected.

"That thing attacked us! We didn't touch each other, until Pit pushed me out of the way of the final attack. Is he ok? That blast literally went right through him!"

"Zelda," Link said quietly, looking down, "Pit's going to be ok…"

Something in his voice told her otherwise. Young Link finished his sentence however, before she could say anything, "He just hasn't woken up yet, and he moves a lot…"

Clarifying, the older Link stated, "He's in a lot of pain, and no one can figure out why. His wounds heal faster than the rest of us, yet he still moans in pain, and shifts constantly. Mario said he's occasionally gone into convulsions, and he's worried Pit's not going to wake up to tell us what's going on."

Zelda blinked before focusing her energy and teleported to Pit's room in the infirmary. The room was dark and quiet save for the small sounds of whimpering. Thinking about that last moment of battle, she hit the light switch without noticing. Pit's wounds had healed, the cut on his face was gone, and his wings had turned white again.

"Pit?" she asked. The angel turned toward her, making her wonder if he could hear her. She sat down on his bed, putting a hand to his head and concentrated. She could feel Sheik becoming curious, though he tried to hide it.

'Zelda?' he asked, 'What're you trying to do?'

'Nothing, I'm just trying to be here for him.'

'Why?'

Zelda chose not to answer. She didn't know why she was doing this at all. She just knew how alone she felt when even Sheik didn't come in their time of need. Initially she'd felt betrayed, but now she wondered, hearing Link's idea of what had happened, if they were even aware of the time that passed.

Pit moaned suddenly, his blue eyes shooting open. A small raspy scream escaped his lips as he sat up quickly, clutching his abdomen. Startled, Zelda withdrew, standing up and taking a step back in surprise before realizing the angel was in fact awake, and in pain. She rushed to him, putting her hands on his shoulders, causing the angel to focus an eye on her.

"Pit… breathe alright? It'll be over soon…" she said to herself as well as Pit. But he kept taking raspy breaths, making small groans, telling her it wasn't stopping, though he was trying to hide it. Even Sheik was perplexed by the situation.

"Z… Zelda…?" Pit ground out. He couldn't take in enough breath to properly talk through the pain.

Zelda shushed him, still holding his shoulders. She really had no idea what to do at all. She'd played by ear moments before, but now she was winging it as best she could. "Hang on."

"It… It won't… go away…" he said. Zelda nodded sadly, putting her hand back on his forehead. The angel continued to gasp for a bit before he passed out, slumping on the bed. His moaning however never ceased.

'Sheik? I am at a loss. What is wrong with him?'

Sheik was confused as well, 'I have no idea princess. It is new to me as well. I myself woke up with you, though I missed your apparent battle with a shadow. The image you describe however is frightening.'

The door suddenly burst open, revealing Young and Older Link. Both were shocked when Zelda disappeared from the room they had been speaking to her in, and rushed to Pit's room to find her, knowing she'd end up there.

"Zelda! You aren't supposed to leave your room!" they both exclaimed.

"I am fine you two, don't pester me about bed rest," she stated darkly, looking back at the angel, who was curled in a ball, and it hurt more to see tears rolling down his face. She didn't know why however, and Sheik was silent to it, which she was thankful for.

"I refuse to stay stuck in bed when the worst of my injuries is a scratch on the arm," she said again, and both Links winced, knowing they did that as well. "You said Pit hadn't woken up…"

Link jumped, blinking a moment, "No, he hasn't."

"He just did."

"Kiddo, go get Mario," the older Link said, looking down at his younger self, who pouted, but ran off. "Zelda?"

"Yes?"

"Don't push yourself, alright?" he said, hesitation in his voice. Zelda turned to him and smiled.

"I won't. I know better than that."

"You're a step above me then."

Mario hurried in after hearing the news from Young Link. "You say he awoke?" Zelda nodded quietly, grabbing the angel's hand.

"He was in a lot of pain…" she explained, eyes dropping, "He couldn't talk much, and he was holding his abdomen. Is there anything you can give him to make him feel better?"

"Perhaps. I didn't want to-a put him on-a meds unless I knew he was still in-a pain," the plumber said, going to a sterile cabinet. "You should be in-a bed princess."

"I refuse."

Her response made Mario chuckle. All of them in the mansion were like this, and there was nothing anyone of them could do to make the others listen. They were always in a stalemate. "Understood."

Mario took a syringe and made his way back to Pit, pulling out an arm and injecting it into the angel's system. A minute later, Pit's moans quieted slightly.

"I'm going to give a small amount of morphine here and there. I don't want to give too much, as he'll become immune to it. But this should help. I must-a go now. Don't push yourself Zelda and I will check on you two later."

Zelda nodded as the three of them took a seat next to the angel. She would follow that rule at least.


	2. Possesion

Zelda sat in the infirmary for two days before Pit finally came around again. She was looking out the window at the clouds, wondering if it was going to rain. A slight groan caught her attention and she snapped her head toward the hospital bed. Pit was blinking rapidly, his expression set in a wince.

"Pit? Are you ok?" she asked, cocking her head slightly. Pit turned foggy blue eyes toward her and blinked a few more times. "Are you feeling any better?"

Pit blinked at her once more, "Zelda?"

"Yeah, I'm here… You doing ok? You've been out for a while now…" she couldn't hide that she'd been worried about the angel. He'd been plaguing her thoughts since she herself had woken up, and she wasn't able to talk things over with him at all due to his unconsciousness.

Sheik had spoken with her, trying to take her mind off of things, though she often started drifting off after a time. Sheik hadn't spoken against her yet though, which she was silently thankful for.

"I… What happened?" Pit asked, clearing his throat. His voice was rough and Zelda winced at hearing it. Instinctively, she rose and moved toward the counter, where a sink and a few paper cups were located, filled one up and returned to him, drawing a confused look from the angel.

"Drink slowly… I have to go find Doctor Mario or Mario…" she said quietly before teleporting out of the room.

Pit blinked at the spot the princess had occupied only a moment before. He moaned as his stomach cramped painfully, nearly making him drop the water. His wings felt like they were on fire and his head was throbbing in unison with his stomach.

The pain felt numbed slightly though and he knew the Doctor or Mario had drugged him up on something to numb him. He wondered what was making him feel this way…

It was a few minutes later when Doctor Mario rushed in looking like he'd been jostled out of bed. "Hello there Pit, and how are you feeling?" the white clad man asked with a raised brow. He hurried over to Pit, sticking a thermometer in the angel's mouth and hustled around him doing other things before taking the temperature.

"Well, your fever has declined slightly… and your blood pressure is level again. I say you're recovering young man."

"Um… Recovering from what exactly?" Pit asked, his head throbbing harder.

"Well, we're not quite sure. Zelda said something about a shadow creature, but no one else saw it but her. Are you alright?"

Pit took a breath as his memory hit him quickly. He'd been on his bed, trying to figure out what was annoying him so much when the shadow thing pounced on him from somewhere else in the room. That lead to a mini battle as he tried protecting himself from its claws and it had caught him numerous times before it accidently threw him through his door.

Zelda had appeared at his side and assisted him as much as she could, although the princess had seemed preoccupied and worried, bringing her guard down a few levels, which opened her up for attack by the shadow beast. He'd taken a hit for her…

"I remember it… What drove that thing away?" he murmured, locking his gaze with the doctor. The doctor shifted, locking the angel's eyes with fearful ones.

"I don't know Pit. Zelda was the last to see it I'm assuming… I'll ask her and then I will tell you, but for now, get some rest."

Zelda was standing outside the door, fuming that Doctor Mario hadn't allowed her back in after the entire two days she'd been allowed to stay. She'd thought about teleporting in, but thought better of it. So, she was stuck waiting for the doctor, and it was driving her crazy.

"_Zelda, calm yourself. Pit will be alright…"_ Sheik said in her mind, making her jump. He'd been quiet most of the day.

"_I know. But I'm on edge for some reason, and I'm not sure why. Do you believe that shadow is still around somewhere?"_ she returned, voicing the concern that had plagued her. That was one reason she'd stayed with the angel, considering he was currently unable to protect himself.

"_I don't know princess… I am certainly worried that it cuts us both off from each other. I do not know how it would be able to sever our connection or how it would be able to "knock me out". It is quite worrisome. Can you try and describe this beast?"_ his voice definitely held worry within it, as well as protectiveness and a sense of shame that Zelda couldn't place.

"_It looked to be made of smoke. It had a face, but it was kind of hard to see, and its eyes were a glowing purple. It had sharp claws that were shiny and black, as well as fangs of the same color. It stood seemingly about two feet taller than us as well…"_

Sheik didn't respond and the doctor exited the room quietly. "Oh, Zelda. Pit is resting now, so why don't you go do the same. You've been in there for two days now, and surely haven't rested much."

She sighed, knowing the doctor wasn't going to take no for an answer. She nodded before turning and moving down the hall. She didn't return to her room however, but found herself in the battle room.

She peered down into the action zone and smiled as she watched Metanight give a few blows to Luigi before a laser blast from Fox almost knocked him over. Metanight's partner, Ike, came out of nowhere, swinging his sword in an arc and knocking Luigi out of the ring. Both quickly moved to Fox, who jumped away from them.

Ike swung his sword again and caught the fox, but the other recovered and landed on his feet before zipping past Metanight, knocking the dark one off the stage. The Fox moved toward Ike, aiming to do the same to him, but the swordsman dodged him much faster than expected and knocked the Fox off the stage.

Zelda laughed at Ike's triumphant grin and the scowls of Luigi and Fox. As they walked in the room, they all stopped a moment, giving her a startled look. "Zelda?" Fox asked with a curious expression, "Did Pit wake up?"

Zelda shifted, taken aback by the question, "He did. He's resting now… Doctor's orders." The four nodded, accepting the answer.

"What brings you here Princess?" Ike asked, looking around the room and not at her. Zelda frowned at the behavior, having never seen the blue haired swordsman ever do so before. Normally the man always looked her in the eye.

"Boredom. I got booted from the medical room, so I came to see what sort of trouble I could get into. You guys were in the middle of your battle, so I didn't interrupt."

"You really should mind your own business, Princess…" Ike mumbled, making her tilt her head, anger bubbling up inside her that she tried to ignore. His eyes danced around her, though she saw they were set in a glare, and it put her on edge. He hadn't been angry a moment ago.

She hadn't done anything to him… At least not that she was aware of. Sheik hadn't either, and he seemed just as perplexed as she about the turn in his personality. What got them both was the anger surrounding him, swirling in his aura, telling them he was pissed off.

Fox, Luigi and Metanight seemed shocked at his words as well. Fox leaned in and put a restraining hand on the swordsman's shoulder, "Hey, calm down. Zelda was just watching. What's wrong with that? We all watch each other in there. Any pointers you can give Zel?"

"Uh…" she started, but she was cut off as Ike picked Fox up by the scruff and threw him across the room, making everyone jump in shock. Fox twisted midair so he didn't hit the wall with his head, but still hit it hard enough for him to feel a bit dazed.

"Ike!" everyone exclaimed in unison, attempting to restrain him. The man swung at them however, and they were knocked backward.

Zelda blinked at the man, taking in his aura and his anger and gasped in shock. _"Sheik! The Shadow creature… It's possessing him!"_

She felt him attempt to take over her, but she denied him, _"Zelda! It's dangerous! Let me take care of this for you!"_

"_No. I will deal with this by myself."_

She summoned her magic and threw it not at Ike, but at his aura. Ike yelled out in pain and clutched his head as the Shadow immerged from him, growling and glaring at them. Luigi and Metanight took a few steps backward in surprise before Fox zipped through it.

It was surprising that Fox's move had done any damage to it at all, but it screamed in agony as the fox literally tore through the shadowy body. It swiped at the fox in retaliation, but Fox jumped over it in a half flip.

Zelda watched Metanight attack it with fast and powerful sword movements. The Shad was growling and hissing, attempting to scare its attackers away by doing so. It sent a blast of its own red energy around the room, knocking into all of them. Zelda shook her head, feeling dizzy.

Sheik was trying to take control again, and though he couldn't activate the change himself, he was trying as best as he could. But it was distracting her from the battle, so, thinking quickly, she closed a few mental barriers on him to keep him quiet. It hurt her to do so, as she'd promised she'd never block him out, but she had no option right now.

Standing, she brought her magic up sent a blast of light energy at it as she'd done before. It crumpled a moment before jumping over them and running away. It took only a few seconds, but they were all soon chasing after the thing, Ike included.

Zelda sighed, not being able to feel the dark presence any more. She quickly turned to everyone else, stopping. "I believe it has disappeared. This is the second time I've seen this thing… What does it want?"

"Zelda, where is everyone?" Fox asked, blinking slowly, still trying to recover from his meeting with the wall.

"They're frozen in time I think," Ike said quietly. He was subdued and obviously upset about not being able to stop the Shadow's possession.

"Frozen in time?" Luigi asked, disbelief in his voice.

"I believe… That's what I got from it anyway… Or they were in a bubble and can't hear what was going on… I'm not entirely sure. Its thoughts were broken and only partly in English…"

"It's alright… We'll figure this out. But I want to go check on Pit…" Zelda said, herding them all toward the infirmary.

"Uh… Ok Princess…" Ike said quietly, taking her silent command.

The infirmary was silent when they entered. Pit was lying quietly on the bed, squinting at them. Zelda let out a breath, happy the Shadow hadn't come for him again. "Hey there… Feeling ok?"

"My entire body is killing me, but it feels numb. What's going on? You guys look like you were fighting or something…" the angel said, furrowing his brow.

"We were… Have you seen it? It came back…" Zelda said quickly, staring at the other. "I wanted to make sure it hadn't found you… It left and we lost it in the halls…"

"Nothing's come in besides you and the doc… I'll be ready for it though…" his voice was shaky but defiant. Zelda shook her head lightly.

"You're in no condition to battle that thing…"

"Well, I'm probly going to be alone when it finds me. I won't have much choice… The doc won't like anyone staying in here with me, unless it's an emergency…"

"This is an emergency and we'll get the ok to stake out from Master or Crazy. Either or will probably see our side in this," Fox said, interjecting between the two. Both of them blinked and nodded in response.

"Right… Then we will be back soon… Metanight, can you stay here, just in case?" Zelda asked quietly as she brought the mental blockades down. Sheik was angry, and remained quiet, making her feel even worse.

"Fine. I will stay with him," was their response, and they left quickly for their answer.


	3. Meta Knight's Theory

A/N* So I just realized I was spelling Meta Knight's name wrong. Why didn't anyone mention that little fact?? Oh well, I love reviews everyone… So if you'd be so kind, please let me know how to make this a better story. Thanks to you guys who have reviewed! Keep that trend up please! This one is kinda short, but I wanted to get it out there for you who are reading.

~~)(~~

Zelda grumbled as the small group made their way back toward the infirmary. They'd gotten the ok to stay with Pit, but it had taken a long winded argument between the two leaders (Crazy seeing their side and Master seeing the doctor's), and several choice words from all involved. She'd gotten rather angry and had done most of the yelling.

"_Why do I feel so protective of Pit?"_ she asked Sheik and herself, not expecting an answer.

"_I am not exactly sure princess, only you can answer that question."_

"_I know..."_ she sighed quietly, gazing to the small group around her. Fox was leading them back, whether it was what he meant to do or not was probably not even known to him, but he was cautiously looking around, making sure they wouldn't run into trouble. Luigi was walking next to her, eyes down. Ike was following up behind them, so she couldn't see what he was doing, but she could feel he was anxious and guilty.

"_Princess, Ike is feeling guilty about the shadow, perhaps a "pep" talk will be in order?"_

Zelda couldn't help it. She let out a small giggle in response to Sheik's mental suggestion as the image of an intervention from the others to Ike sprang to her mind. They all stopped to stare at her in bewilderment, making her giggle turn into a small laughing fit.

"_What is so funny Princess?"_ his mental image was just as confused if not a bit worried, making her take a deep breath.

"Sorry, I had a funny image… I couldn't help the laughter. Anyway, Ike, you do know the Shadow thing wasn't your fault, right?" she asked giving him a pointed stare. He nodded slowly and unsurely. "Good, cause it's not, right guys?"

"Yeah, you know, possessions are hard to stop even if you know about 'em…" Fox said quietly, making Ike relax slightly. They all knew about the Cornerian's adventure on the dinosaur planet and the Krazoa spirits who had possessed him to get back to the main temple thing. The admission was enough to pacify the swordsman for now, and his aura changed to slightly more understanding than self blaming.

"How could you-a blame yourself for something like-a that?" Luigi asked, giving a consoling look to the other, who merely shrugged in response. "Well, let's-a go. We can stay with-a Pit and keep an eye on him. After-a all, that's-a what we wanted to-a do, neh?"

Nodding, they all continued down the hall, keeping their eyes open for any sign of the Shadow creature. They didn't speak the entire way back to the infirmary. Zelda grinned behind her hand when she realized the others had decided they would tag along with her for the sole reason of 'they were all attacked'. It was funny, because she hadn't expected them to do so.

Pit looked up at them, curiousness gracing his expression as they all walked in. Meta Knight turned to them as well, his eyes glowing ominously. "Hey Pit!" Fox said loudly, grinning at the angel who smiled as large as he could.

"Hey Fox!"

Zelda shook her head. The two had always greeted each other as loud as they possibly could, which had at one point lead to confusion and a long winded explanation of how the greeting was an inside joke they'd come up with.

"Well, looks like we'll all be roommates for a bit. Hope you don't mind angel boy," the fox grinned again, sitting next to the angel. Pit just smiled some more in response with a nod of his head, glancing at everyone else.

"All of you guys are staying? How'd you get the doc to allow that one?"

"We got Crazy on our side. Even Master knows a battle with Crazy is futile most days," Ike stated, giving Pit a strange look. "You alright? You look pale…"

Pit's smile faltered and he sighed quietly, "I'm alright… I just feel really worn down. I don't know why considering I've been doing nothing but sleep these past few days… Is that normal?"

Zelda furrowed her brow, knowing normally it was normal to feel fatigued after something like being out for a few days, but Ike was right. Pit was much paler now then he'd been before they'd gone to the Hands. His blue eyes were tired and Zelda hid the yawn that overtook her just by looking at him.

"It's-a normal to be-a tired… We'll let you rest, ok?" Luigi suggested, hunkering down into a chair and closing his eyes in contentment. The others nodded as well, allowing the angel some space in order to get some rest.

"_He's almost too pale… Sheik, do you think he's alright?"_

"_No. He's hiding something, but what do we expect to gain from an interrogation? He'd deny feeling anything out of the ordinary… He's a stubborn one. Then again, so are we all."_

Zelda sighed, _"You're words didn't help much friend…"_

"_They weren't supposed too."_ She winced at the lack of emotion he responded with. Apparently he was still upset.

"_I'm sorry for earlier Sheik… I will never do that again…"_

"_No, it's alright Princess. I understand your reasons. Please, don't apologize."_

"_Sheik, you're upset about it. How can I not be sorry?"_ she sighed, knowing he wasn't listening anymore. She'd felt him break off from the mental link they shared just after his last statement. It hurt a bit, but she couldn't blame him really. She'd have been just as upset in his position.

She gazed around the room, taking in the various activities the others were doing. Luigi was dozing in the chair and Meta Knight was staring out the window. Ike and Fox were engaged in a conversation, whispering quietly as they could. Pit was sleeping on the bed, though he didn't seem comfortable…

"Zelda?" Meta Knight said suddenly, jerking everyone's attention to him. He turned, ignoring the others, to face her. "That shadow, would you know if it came about once more?"

"I believe so… I can feel the darkness of its aura, and it honestly frightens me. That thing is the darkest thing I've ever felt," she said quietly, gazing at him. The question was a bit random, but she could see why he asked. "I can feel it when it's close. I believe anyway… I haven't noticed until it attacks though… So I'm not sure."

"Do you feel it now?"

"No… should I?" she felt suspicion over compass her. Meta Knight blinked, looking out the window once more.

"I'm not sure. I feel something myself. I'm not sure exactly what it is, but there's something nagging on my senses, telling me to be on edge. I just noticed it when you all left. I don't sense things the way you do, so I asked in case there was something substantial behind my nerves."

Everyone blinked rapidly at him. Sheik himself was nearly at a loss of words, _"That's the most I believe he's ever said in a single sitting… Something is definitely bothering him…"_

"I honestly don't feel anything out of the ordinary… I don't really know. The two attacks have been surprise ones, and I haven't had any forewarning, except the very first one when I felt the disruption moments before Pit was thrown through the door…"

"I felt something watching me then. I'd heard a noise, and I felt something watching me," Pit's voice sounded out, strong but subdued, startling them all. The captain was watching the others in curiosity, his expression still tired. "I fell asleep though, and it sneak-attacked and sent me through a wall or a door or something… wasn't really paying much attention…"

"What is-a this thing?" Luigi asked, "Have any of us-a seen this-a thing before?" The others all shook their heads negatively. "We'll-a just have-a to keep our eyes-a peeled then…"

Pit's eyes jumped to the far side of the room a split second before he moaned and clutched his chest in pain. The others gaped for a moment, surprised by the action before they realized he was in pain. His skin paled even more, making him almost transparent, and they all gathered around him to try and figure out what to do.

"Are you alright?" Fox asked, a hand on the angel's shoulder.

"No… I don't know what's wrong with me… I can't… breath!" he ground out suddenly, turning frantic eyes to them all before passing out. They all exclaimed, before turning at the sound of another entering the room. The feel of the air grew darker and they all gasped at how cold it got suddenly.

Before them all was the familiar form of the Shadow in all of its growling and hissing glory. Its eyes burned with blood lust and its claws clenched and unclenched in readiness for battle. They watched as it launched suddenly toward them all, poised to maim them all.


	4. Sheik's Attempt

So Ii had to completely rewrite this entire thing… I'd gotten about 5 pages in, and my computer crashed and I can't find the file anywhere. Gah! But I'm just typing this up spur of the moment, so if some edges are choppy, please bear with me and I'll fix them when I can.

Anyway, to Ninja Sheik, yes, Sheik is a male stuck in Zelda's body. I like him as a guy because it makes things just that much more complicated for the both of them. I see them as teens in the Zelda series, so with the awkwardness of the teenage years plus sharing a body with one of the opposite gender is just… amusing to me I guess.

And there just may be character death later on. *wink wink* So, while you'll be pleased to know Pit won't bit the dust this chapter, Mewtrainer, someone will later on in the story.

~~()~~

Zelda moved quickly to be at the front of Pit's bedside, shifting herself into a defensive position. She felt Ike move beside her, bringing Ragnell into an offensive stance, just in case it got past Fox, Luigi and Metaknight.

Fox jumped over its initial attack, making the thing ground out what sounded like an aggravated sigh of frustration. The fox completed the dodge by planting both feet on its back and pushing off of it, sending it stumbling slightly. Recovering, it let loose a very loud and ear piercing shriek.

"_Be careful princess, this thing is ready to rip us all apart,"_ Sheik stated quickly as she regained her composure. She locked eyes with Metanight, who nodded at her slightly before jumping before the beast and slicing at it. Fox zipped through the beast as he'd done in the past, and it groaned before letting loose a powerful red energy at them both, sending them both unconscious.

Luigi pounded on the shadow, his hands falling into its body with every hit, before he let some fireballs go from his fire plant. The shadow didn't seem to care much and merely shoved him back into the far wall with a powerful swing of its hand.

Ike shifted beside her once more and she knew he was about to go on the offensive. She summoned her light magic to the surface, ready to shoot it at the shadow creature. She froze when she saw its purple eyes glow brightly.

"_It's done this before… The other night… Just before it shot out energy… maybe its eyes are its weak spot!"_ she thought to Sheik, who she could feel was becoming more and more antsy to the whole situation.

"_This thing has the ability to cut us off princess… And it's done something to Pit. Be sure to stay on guard…"_

Ike lunged with Ragnell, bringing the sword in an over head swing and bringing it down above the creature, only to have the sword thrown from his grasp be a wave of energy. Shocked, the mercenary fell unceremoniously to the ground before rolling out of the way of another attack. Zelda took a deep breath, concentrating on her magic and just as Ike jumped away, she sent it at the monster.

Only to find it deflected back at her.

She fell back on the bed next to Pit. But when she stood back up, she was no longer Zelda, but Sheik. The warrior looked around in a slight daze of confusion before ducking over the angel as another wave crashed into the wall behind them. He was unable to feel Zelda through their mind link, making him slightly edgy. He didn't know what happened to her.

Taking a breath, he decided to lean closer to the angel beneath him.

"You better not die on us angel… Zelda doesn't know what's drawing her to you, but I think I've figured it out. Break her heart, I'll break your wings…" he whispered quietly before reaching into a pocket and retrieving some darts. He stood and jumped quickly off of the bed and threw the at the shadow beast, who was inching toward the bed, having gotten bored with Ike.

Sheik mentally berated himself as the darts went right through the shadowy body. Deciding to take Fox's tactic, he tried to run through the being, only to get caught in its center. Horrified and feeling very disgusting, he struggled to get loose. He then realized, without the fox's speed, nothing could get entirely in and out of it, making him mentally smack himself once more.

A sickeningly wet feeling was encompassing his body and he couldn't breathe. He felt the body shift around him, and he fought to get free. His lungs were burning, driving him to subconsciously grab for a knife in his chest pocket. As he brought it out, he felt the thing shiver in pain as the blade cut through the shadowy liquid that made up its inside.

Taking that as a good thing, he cut every direction he could, slowly pushing himself out of the shadow. The sudden feeling of ice brought him to open his eyes, and he found himself on the ground near Fox and Metanight. Taking in air to appease his lungs, he turned his eyes behind him to the creature, which was letting out a loud wail as it clutched the spot he assumed he'd come out from.

Unable to move well, he watched it disappear out through the door which it'd entered.

It took a few minutes to regain his breathing, and Fox's voice startled him. "Holy hell… what is that smell? Sheik? You look like shit, you ok?"

The fox was staring straight at him, a hand on the back of his head, the other over his nose, and one eye squinted shut. Looking down, Sheik felt bile in his throat. Dark black liquid was covering every inch of him, seeming almost like oil. It smelled disgusting and looked just as bad. His right arm was bleeding, and he assumed it was the injury Zelda was still recouping from, though he didn't remember seeing it when he gained control.

"Ugh… What-a happened? Is it-a gone?" Luigi asked, rubbing his forehead. Not trusting his voice, Sheik nodded curtly at Fox before planting a hand on the wall to his left and hefted himself up. He stumbled slightly however and suddenly felt an arm wrap around him.

Looking up slightly, he saw Ike had recovered from whatever the shadow had done to him and was holding him upright. Metaknight was shaking his head, probably trying to clear his thoughts, Fox had left the room, presumably for fresh air, Luigi was checking on Pit, and Ike was beside him. He turned inwardly and tried to contact Zelda.

A large barrier was surrounding where her consciousness normally was in his mind, confusing him. Though it was similar to the one she'd used previously on him, it was completely different. He couldn't sense her, and her thoughts were completely sealed off from him. The barrier was an angry one as well, lashing out at him whenever he attempted to try and bring it down.

He felt Ike's grip strengthen and as he opened his eyes he was struck by a sense of vertigo. The floor was very close to his line of sight, not where it'd been before. Ike was holding him tightly, making sure he didn't fall and smash into it, but he was saying something as well, and his voice sounded far off.

Curious, Sheik turned his head toward the swordsman, trying to gage his expression, only to feel dizzy once more and his sight darkened dramatically with spots lining it. Confused, he tightened his own grip on Ike's arm, and tried to regain his balance. Both of them ended up hitting the floor in response.

The room started spinning and he could faintly hear Ike yelling for Doctor Mario. Grabbing the blue haired man's arm once more, he pulled himself up to a sitting position, only to be pushed down by the other hand of the man. "No… don't. You'll hurt yourself Sheik. We're going to have you checked out, alright?"

"No, I'm alright…" he replied softly, trying to push himself back up again. His head was pounding and the sense of vertigo wasn't leaving him alone. "Please, Ike, I'm fine. Let me up."

"You know better than that… I know you're not fine, because you can't even look me in the eye. You're hurt, and we're going to have the doctor check it out, alright? Please, just calm down."

"He should be looking at Pit… He wasn't able to breathe… Don't worry about me, alright?"

"Stop being stubborn! Mario is checking him, the doctor's on his way to assess the both of you. Pit seems to be ok now, so stop fighting me!"

Surprised by the sound in the man's voice, Sheik fell silent and watched the room continue to spin. He felt rather than saw Doctor Mario approach them both a few minutes later. He couldn't quite hear what he and Ike were saying, but he knew it had something to do with a recap of events. A cloth was suddenly on his face and he instinctively moved his right arm to get it away.

Only to hiss as pain sprouted from the spot Zelda had been wounded before.

"Easy there Sheik…" the doctor muttered, and Sheik barely caught it. "I was under the impression that your wounds wouldn't affect the other one of you when you transformed…"

"So was I… I don't remember this being here…" the warrior said as loud as he could, knowing his voice was fairly quiet to begin with. Feeling the strange dark liquid no longer on his face made him feel slightly better, so he allowed the doctor move another cloth over his arm so he could get a good look at the wound.

He tried once again to take down the mental barrier blocking him and Zelda. The others would find it strange she wouldn't come forth, and he was worried about her in general. But the block wasn't coming down no matter what he did. It instead tried to keep him away from it by sending a mental shock through him, making him physically cringe.

"Are-a you ok-a?" the doctor asked with a worried tone, "Your wound-a has been dressed, does-a it still-a hurt?"

"No… It's fine. Thank you," Sheik replied, opening his eyes. The doctor moved away toward Pit's bed and Sheik took the opportunity to try and sit up again.

Vertigo hit not long after, though he was able to cope with it. Taking a breath and looking at Ike, who was watching him suspiciously, he nodded silent thanks. "I feel I must take a shower… The smell is a bit over powering." He took a breath and stood, feeling himself falter slightly, and once more, Ike was beside him, holding him upright.

"You'll fall if you're not careful. Are you sure it's a good idea to go and do that now? Wait a little bit for your senses to come back. What happened to you anyway?" Ike looked like he was holding in a small chuckle at Sheik's small misfortune of smelling bad.

The others were soon crowded around them, all eager to hear what had happened while they'd been unconscious. Sheik sighed, knowing he wouldn't be getting out of telling them why he looked like he'd been tossed in an oil pit and spit back out again.

"I had a small momentary lapse of judgment and tried to copy Fox's move on the shadow and ended up becoming stuck within it. I had to cut my way out of it, and then it left, howling as per usual," he stated quietly, looking to the floor.

"You were inside that thing?" Fox asked suddenly, "Ouch. No wonder you smell like something's bowels…"

Disgusted by the wording, Sheik merely closed his eyes, and the image of the mental barrier hit his senses once more. Worried, he looked up again, only to find himself being carried by Ike, who was the tallest of the group surrounding them. Confused, he looked at the swordsman, who stopped to give him a worried glance.

"You passed out back there, so we were bringing you to your room… you sure you're alright?" his voice was steady, and calm and brought the others to gather around once more.

"I'm fine, please, put me down. I can walk just fine."

"With assistance," Metaknight butt in, bringing a glare from the warrior.

Doctor Mario moved in front of Ike, and the swordsman went down slightly, setting Sheik on the floor before him. The doctor gazed at him quietly, his eyes connecting with Sheik's and the other took in a deep breath. "Sheik, tell me-a exactly what-a you're symptoms are, or-a you'll be in my-a infirmary for a month. Is Zelda feeling-a side effects as well?"

He closed his eyes momentarily, "I don't know what Zelda is currently going through. I cannot reach her. She has a mental shield up that I can't get through." The others all shifted at those words, not really understanding the true implications of what they truly meant.

"Why would-a Zelda cut herself-a off from you?" Luigi asked, his head cocked to the side. Sheik gazed at the others for a moment, taking in their expressions. Fox's ears were back slightly, as if he didn't really want to hear any of this. Fox would know better than most what the implications of that meant, having been one of Sheik's better friends throughout their time here.

Mario and Doctor Mario were giving him strange looks, both wanting to know more than what he'd just let out. Ike was standing with his arms crossed, completely not understanding what he'd just said. The swordsman knew very little about Zelda and his connections, though Sheik knew he was interested, especially where Zelda was concerned.

Zelda didn't pick up on it, but Sheik had. The swordsman had developed a small crush on her. Which was probably why Ike was the one being Sheik's support currently. Though he didn't understand their connection, he knew they were relatively the same person.

Metaknight himself looked curious, from what he could see through the smaller's mask. His eyes were softer than normal, though the curious gleam in them was vibrant enough to make them seem the same. Luigi was just giving a small, semi-understanding gaze.

"She normally would not. But after she was hit with an energy blast, I found myself suddenly in control and I couldn't sense her. What happened is beyond me, and I can't reach her," he said quietly.

"Do you have any other-a symptoms besides not-a being able to stand on-a your own? You're barely able to even-a sit there!" the doctor continued, pointing out that Sheik had planted his left arm on the ground behind him to keep himself upright.

"No, dizziness is my only issue currently, besides Zelda's wound. I'm otherwise fine."

"You keep saying that, and you just passed out back there," Ike quipped, earning a small glare.

"I don't remember passing out at all. I tried to take that barrier down, and when I came out of it from another mental shock, you were carrying me down the hall," he put as much irritation into his sentence as he could.

"Mental shock?" Mario asked, not really knowing what that meant. Sheik decided not to answer him.

Instead, the warrior played the stubborn card and stood up in his spot, feeling a bit off kilter still, but refused to let Ike keep a handle on him. Instead, he walked as briskly as he could down the hall toward Zelda's room, but instead of turning left into hers, he turned right, into Link's.

The blond was in his room, polishing the Master Sword. He looked up at Sheik with a mix of surprise as the warrior moved toward him. Sheik hadn't actually been in control in a while, and Link was honestly surprised to see him.

Until he remembered that the last time he'd seen Sheik was before Zelda had asked him out. He wondered if he was here to take revenge for her. "Sheik?"

"Link. I don't really know why I came in… But I need to speak with you," Zelda's previous affections for him were making him be slightly nervous around the other Hylian. Her thoughts hadn't exactly stayed to herself, so he found himself in an awkward situation of wanting to throttle the man before him and wanting to get rid of the images she'd had in her head once upon a time, and wanting this to be a regular conversation between friends.

"Uh… does this have to do with Zelda?" the green clad male asked with a worried tone.

Surprised Link already knew, he nodded, "Yes…"

"I'm sorry! Please, don't attack me!" the other sprang up suddenly and pinned Sheik against the wall, making the vertigo feeling return once more. "I didn't mean to hurt Zelda… I'm just not interested in her that way… Please, just don't attack alright? We're still friends, right?"

Unable to move and confused, Sheik replied, "Yes, we are… Please, release me…"

"Sorry!" Link exclaimed, his hands letting Sheik go like the other was on fire. Sheik almost fell straight down to the floor had he not caught a hand on the dresser beside him. "Seriously though, is Zelda mad?"

It took a second before Sheik realized the hero was talking about his rejection of her and not her mental barrier. 'Idiot, of course he wouldn't know about that. I must have hit my head during the battle…' he thought, shaking his head slightly. "No… She's merely upset with herself over that…"

"Goddesses… I didn't mean to upset her… I just… It took me by surprise. I should have seen it coming, but I didn't… She didn't seem to angry with me when she was in the infirmary… Hey, what happened? Are you alright?!"

Link had spotted Sheik's arm, bandaged lightly, and then noticed the slimy substance all over the warrior's body. "I'm fine. A small run in with the shadow creature Zelda told you about. But now I can't contact Zelda, and its making me a bit edgy…"

He said it quietly, but Link shouted his response, "WHAT? How'd that happen?! Is she alright?"

"I don't know. She's cut herself off from me and the barrier won't let me try to bring it down. I don't know if Zelda is alright, but I need to figure out how to bring it down. I came here to you out of old habit."

"One of the psychics can probably bring it down. We can talk to Ness or Lucario. One of them should be able to help," Link stated, patting Sheik on the back, nearly toppling him. "You ok? I didn't hit you that hard…"

"I'm fine. I'm just slightly off balance currently," was all Sheik replied with as he walked out of the room, Link following him closely.

Sheik was thankful to see the group had disappeared, meaning he wouldn't need to deal with them telling him to get to his room. He and Link quickly made their way toward the south wing of the mansion, trying to find Ness. He stumbled once or twice, but his equilibrium was slowly returning, allowing him to stay fairly straight while walking.

The psychic kid was playing with Nana, Popo and Lucas. But psychic kids were levitating the ice climbers, both of whom were laughing with glee. Lucas noticed their arrival first and cautious set Popo down and turned to them with a nervous smile. Ness merely turned mid air, moving Nana with him to face them as well.

"Hey guys!" Link smiled with a small wave. "Ness? Can we borrow you for a moment?" Ness shrugged, setting Nana down, who made a pouty face in response. Popo just rolled his eyes at her.

"Sure, I'll be right back guys," he said with a small wave to Lucas and the ice climbers. The boy followed as they moved into an empty room slightly down the hall.

"Sorry to interrupt your fun Ness," Link said with a small grin. It turned serious a moment later though as he explained the situation to the boy. Ness listened intently until the Hylian stopped, than closed his eyes and concentrated a moment.

Sheik felt the boy touch his mind, and it was a strange feeling. He felt the barrier resist to Ness's handling, but after a few tense moments, he felt it start to crack. He quickly started help the boy, but he couldn't help the cringe when he was hit by another wave of mental energy from the barrier. It wasn't doing that to Ness…

Ness stopped his attack and opened his eyes, gazing at Sheik in surprise. Apparently the boy hadn't expected the backlash either. "Are you alright?"

"Yes, please, continue. I'll stay out of the way," Sheik replied, keeping his eyes closed. He didn't want the other two to see how Zelda's barrier was affecting him.

The barrage picked up a moment later and pieces fell now and then. Soon, the barrier was down, and Zelda's presence made itself known in his mind. She was angry, though he couldn't figure out why, and she refused to speak to him. _"Zelda? Please, tell me why you were keeping me out… Are you alright?"_

"_I'm fine. Please, leave me alone…"_ her mental voice sounded strained and angry, and he couldn't figure out why. _"Return to Pit for me. Make sure he's alright… That shadow is after him. I'm sure of it."_

"_Of course Princess… I will keep my eye on him,"_ was all he could say in response. Ness, who'd heard the entire thing, said nothing but was watching him sadly. Link had no idea they'd been successful, so he kept silent.

"I'm going back to the infirmary to keep an eye on Pit. Thank you for helping us Ness," Sheik stated, standing quietly and moving toward the door.

"Wait, did it work? Have you found Zelda?" Link asked, eyes wide.

"Yes, she's back. Angry at me, but fine from what I can tell."

"Angry at you? For worrying about her?" Link asked in confusion.

"So it would seem. But she has instructed me to return to the infirmary and keep an eye on Pit should the shadow return. I'll see you two later," with that, the warrior left the room, trying to sort his thoughts out as he moved toward the hospital wing.

"_Zelda, why are you upset?"_ he asked her. Feeling her agitation, he took a deep breath.

"_Why did you break that barrier?"_ she asked in return.

"_Because I didn't know what happened to you. You were suddenly gone in my mind and I was worried something hurt you."_

"_That shadow did hurt me. It hurt us both. I was recovering from it. I didn't want you to feel what I'd received from that blow… How hurt are you?"_ her voice was suddenly laced with concern.

"_I'm alright. The thing knocked me I'm assuming. I'm recovering."_

"_You're dizzy? I felt it when you were talking to everyone. You could barely stand. What did you do when I was unconscious?"_

"_I pulled a Fox, but it didn't go as planned. I don't know why I was dizzy… I'm fine now."_

When he came back to the infirmary, he found Pit staring back at him, the others all in different positions as they took small naps. "Hey," Pit greeted.

"Hello. Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I just couldn't really breathe very well earlier. My body hurts, but otherwise, I'm fine. I heard you had a run in with the shadow… I can smell what everyone was talking about…" there was a small grin on the angel's face that Sheik couldn't place.

"Yes. I still need a shower. I'd better go take one before everyone throws me in a lake," the warrior said with a small smile of his own as he moved to the infirmary showers.


	5. Complications?

So, Ninja Sheik gets a plate of cookies. You found one of my errors! I was wondering if anyone would catch the Metaknight misspelling and tell me about it.

But no one's told me about the other mistakes. I made several mistakes and didn't notice them until re-reading through the posted version. Oops on my part. Funny that the one I intentionally missed was the one I got called on.

And we'll find out about that later on, Mewtrainer! So stay tuned…

ZeldaXPit fluff scene!

~~()~~

Zelda was the one to immerge from the shower nearly a half hour later. Everyone was still napping in various places of the room, bringing forth a small smile.

Fox was leaning against the wall next to Pit's bed, head resting on his knees. Luigi wasn't far off, head lolling on his chest with small snores erupting from him now and then. Ike was sitting in a cross-legged position, looking almost as if he was in meditation, and Meta Knight was propped up in the corner, eyes closed. Pit was staring at her with a broad grin.

"Hey Zelda," he said just above a whisper, his eyes still tired, but everything else seemingly normal. She smiled back at him, her eyes looking him over to be absolutely sure he was alright.

"Hey Pit."

"Hey, is Sheik alright? He said was going to go take a shower… He kinda smelled really bad…" Pit winked, his grin never ceasing. "But he was out of it earlier, at least, from what I heard. Is he alright?"

Zelda's stomach flittered slightly as the angel spoke, making her confused. She masked it as well as she could and nodded. "He's alright; he just needs to rest a bit. He over did it today." Pit looked slightly sheepish.

"Tell him I'm sorry… I couldn't help in that fight… But I heard everything he said…" his cheeks turned pink slightly, giving Zelda a suspicious feeling.

"And just what did he say?"

"Nothing that needs to be repeated. I just wish I could have helped him… The battle was silent for about three minutes, during which I assume was when he was caught within that thing… That must have been a long three minutes…" Pit replied, averting his eyes. Zelda blinked, not having known how long the battle really lasted.

She was honestly surprised she and Sheik were even still alive. When she'd been hit by the blast, it had felt as if she'd had all of her energy sapped from her, and she became numb. When she had started to recover, she felt Sheik's worry, but she also knew he was in a battle and she immediately upped the mental blockade.

She really had no idea how she'd allowed him to take control when she had barely been able to realize her attack had been turned against her. But she had felt anger at Sheik later, and she really didn't know why, so instead of bringing the barrier down, she strengthened it.

She didn't know what had pushed her to do so now that she thought back. The anger she'd felt had dissipated when she noticed his injury was remarkably like the one she'd received days before. Now all she felt was confusion.

"Zelda?" Pit's voice asked suddenly, bringing her to look at him. His cheeks were flushed once more, and he was shaking lightly.

"Are you alright Pit?" she asked, concern lacing her words.

Pit nodded, "Yeah… I'm ok… Um… would you like… to go out to dinner sometime?"

She felt her heart stutter in silent reply to the question. Pit took a deep breath after he spoke his piece, waiting with clenched eyes for her response. _"Did he just ask what I think he just asked…?"_

"_I believe he did Princess… What is your answer going to be?"_ Sheik replied, reminding her that the angel was waiting.

"I… uh… sure…" she replied, unable to keep her voice steady. A million things went through her mind at once. 'Isn't this wrong? Don't I still like Link? Is this going against something? Why is he asking me? Do I like him?' She felt her pulse quicken and her stomach did a flip flop.

"Ok… I'm not exactly sure what one does on a… date… Satoshi kinda wasn't clear on that one when I asked… But I'm sure we can find something…" though his expression was nervous, his eyes were twinkling with excitement and she couldn't stop the giggle that escaped her.

"Satoshi? Do I want to know?" she whispered, holding in her giggles as best as she could.

"No, you really don't…" Pit laughed, shaking his head.

"Can't a guy get any sleep around here?" Fox asked rather loudly, opening an eye at them. "Yeesh... You two are loud enough to wake the dead…"

"And you are loud enough to wake the inanimate…" Meta Knight stated, just above a whisper, making Zelda giggle, Pit smirk and Fox grin evilly.

"Now that we are all awake…" Luigi muttered darkly, his accent hidden by the sleepiness in his voice, "I hope you're happy…"

"Yup!" Fox and Pit exclaimed as one.

Zelda couldn't keep the grin off of her face. Her stomach still felt like butterflies had been let loose within it, and she was sure she was blushing fairly heavily. 'Why am I being so affected by Pit asking me out…? I feel like a common girl who's been asked for courtship by a handsome knight!' she thought to herself, laughing mentally. Technically, she was a princess being asked by heaven's captain of the guard. That was close enough to the same thing to her.

"_He seems better,"_ Sheik stated, and she nodded slightly, not really paying attention to the others for a moment. _"You sure you want to go out with him princess?"_

"_Yes… I'll give it a try… Why? Is there a problem with giving this a chance?"_

"_Not at all princess. I just want you to be happy,"_ Sheik replied, his voice quieter, though there was the small sound of a smile in it.

"Zelda?" Pit asked suddenly, "Did you want to play?"

She blinked, feeling the other's all looking to her for her answer. "Uh… What are you playing?"

"Told you she was out of it," Fox grinned.

"I was not!" she exclaimed, glaring. "I was simply not paying attention!"

"Sheik doing alright?" Ike asked, a curious expression on his face. She nodded in response, looking at everyone else, who seemed to be worried suddenly.

"Yeah, he's alright… why does everyone seem so worried?" she asked, eyes darting over everyone's expressions. Pit was the only one not concerned, though he just looked confused.

Meta Knight was the one who spoke up, "He said you were out of contact. But here you are now. But he was having problems staying conscious and even on his feet."

"We all were talking after he left…" Ike continued, "He seemed almost like he had a concussion, though he didn't seem to have a head wound… We were wondering if maybe… it was a small side effect of that barrier you apparently put up?"

Zelda felt her blood run cold. 'Was I really the reason Sheik was hurt? I was trying to do the opposite! Sure, I felt a bit out of it when I put that barrier up, but surely it didn't do that to him as well… It was the creature who did that… right?'

"_Zelda?"_ Sheik broke through her thoughts, feeling her sudden stress.

"_Sheik… I think I almost did something really bad…"_

"_Surely not. A simple barrier has never knocked me off kilter before, you know that. I think it was just the pressure from being within the Shadow that caused my little problem. It was nothing serious anyway. I was getting over the dizziness by the time we'd found Ness. Do not worry yourself."_

"Zel?" Fox's voice made her jump. "Are you ok?"

"Yes… I honestly don't know if I was the reason behind Sheik's out of character moment or not. I'm not going to do that again however, to be on the safe side. I really don't know why I did it anyway."

"Well, just be careful, alright?" Ike asked, moving closer to her. Zelda watched Pit's face grow dark and she could hear Sheik mentally growl, making her blink.

"Sure. I'll be as careful as ever," she responded with a kind smile. _"Sheik? Are you alright? Why are you growling?"_

"_Zelda… surely you can see it-"_ he was cut off by Ike, who'd turned to grasp her hand carefully.

"Princess, may I speak to you for a moment?" his voice was sincere, and there was a spark in his eyes that made her heart speed up. She merely nodded in response, feeling Sheik mentally squirm. She quirked a brow at the warrior's behavior as she and the mercenary made their way out of the room.

In the hall, Ike turned to face her, taking her left hand once more. "Zelda… I… hmm… Would you… mind, going to the beach this Saturday? The weather has been so nice, and the mansion seems to be so small these days…"

For the second time that day, she couldn't quite believe what she was hearing, _"Is he…?"_

"_Yes,"_ Sheik replied darkly, _"He too, is asking you on a date…"_

"_Oh no… What do I do??"_

"_Do what you think is right. You haven't set a date with Pit, but if you feel the need to lie to Ike and say you're busy, I'm sure he wouldn't mind TOO terribly."_

"_Do I sense hostility? Sheik, did Ike do something to wrong you?"_

"_No. He has done nothing… I'm not trying to be hostile, it's just that I think since you've already promised Pit you'd go out with him, you shouldn't go with Ike."_

"_You were growling!"_

"_Yes… But that's because I get along better with Pit. I'm not exactly sure if Ike knows I'm a completely different person then you, and so he treats me the way he does you, and not the way he does, say, Fox."_

"_You are looking way too far into this…"_

"_Am I? I picked up that he likes you about two months ago. I picked up around the same time that he treats both of us like porcelain, where he treats Peach and Samus differently. Is it really too farfetched to believe he likes you a _lot_?"_

"_Well, no, since he's asking me right now to go out with him to a romantic setting…"_

She blushed harder before looking up to meet Ike's waiting dark blue eyes. "Um… I uh… I'm kinda already doing something on Saturday…"

"Oh… well… how about Sunday?" he asked again, his face turning a slight pink-ish tint. She silently applauded his persistence, though she definitely cursed it as well.

"Well… You see…" she started, her words blurring together as she tried to come up with a good response.

"You see Ike, I kind of already asked Zelda out…" Pit's voice stated suddenly, making them both jump in shock. The angel was standing not far away from the Hylian Princess, wearing the infirmary scrubs. His arms were crossed and his wings were drooped slightly, still healing from their wounds from his run in with the Shadow. His light blue eyes were narrowed slightly, daring the mercenary to protest against the claim.

"Oh… I… I see… Well, I'll uh… Leave you alone then…" Ike said quickly, ducking his head and turning down the hall.

Zelda's heart pounded loudly in her chest. It was a few moments before she found her voice again. "What are you doing out of bed? Last I knew you were having a hard time keeping yourself awake… Are you sure you're alright?"

"I'm fine… Actually, since the Shadow left this time, I feel like that whole thing was a dream. I can breathe fine, and I'm not exhausted at all. I figured asking you was alright because now I know I won't pass out on you…"

"Thank you… For stepping in back there…" she closed her eyes, trying to tame the blush that graced her features once more. Her heart picked up its pace once more and she was thankful the angel didn't have Fox's hearing.

"Hey… I saw you were uncomfortable… And besides… I wanted to tell someone that you were taken… even if it is only for one night so far," he smiled. She laughed at his nervousness with that last sentence. She could tell he wanted it to be more than just one night, but he sounded so unsure, it was cute.

"Well, I thank you. Now, let's get you back into bed before the doctor comes back and throws a fit because we're all not doing our jobs in making sure you stay there," she giggled, taking his arm and leading him back into the room.


	6. Therapy Issues

It was an entire week later before Doctor Mario allowed Pit to leave the medical bay. He felt excitement about it, knowing the others, who'd been by his side the entire time, needed a break in scenery just as much as he did. They hadn't been attacked at all by the Shadow since Sheik's victory over the beast, and they were starting to wonder if the warrior had done more than simply driving it off.

He wasn't complaining though. He could get back to training with Meta Knight and Fox and he could finally go with Zelda someplace. 'I wonder where we should go… I'm not familiar with Earth traditions, so I don't know where would be appropriate… Perhaps I should ask Mario? Satoshi was less than helpful last time I asked him…' the angel thought, stretching his wings.

He was currently on his way to the training area to get his body used to moving again. The doctor had told him no out right battling, but had said it was alright to train as long as it wasn't too strenuous. He had his sacred bow and he was wearing his usual clothing, feeling like he hadn't been in the infirmary at all.

The others would be there as well, he was certain. They had become nearly inseparable during the week in the infirmary room. Though they argued now and then over the stupidest of reasons, they had become much closer than Pit had imagined.

He'd grown much closer to Zelda than he'd imagined.

She'd been next to him the entire time, making sure he was feeling alright. When the others were sleeping, they talked about everything and anything. He couldn't keep his eyes off of her. Her smile was contagious and he felt warm whenever she spoke. It was nothing he'd ever known before, but he knew vaguely was. Angels in his home world often spoke of courtships and love, and even on occasion bonded to another, promising to share everything with them.

He wondered if he was feeling what they did. He honestly hoped so. He liked Zelda much more than he'd originally thought. When she'd helped him in the corridor, he realized he wanted to be near her much more than he gave himself credit for, and when he'd seen the blast heading for her, his heart nearly stopped and he hurried to intercept.

Pit sighed, opening the door for the training area. Marth and Ike were exchanging blows, trying to find holes in each other's defenses. Meta Knight was going through some of his fast sword movements and Fox and Falco were sparing in the corner. Pit moved to a less crowded section of the room and broke his bow into two swords and went slowly through some of his movements.

He felt his body protest in the movements that were normally second nature. He wasn't even doing them very fast at all, which unnerved him slightly. Coming from a double slice, he formed the swords back into the bow and spun it around him with deadly precision. He frowned slightly, feeling his muscles protest again. The edge of the sacred bow's top blade nicked him slightly across his shoulder and he halted his movements.

He vaguely felt the eyes of everyone around the room trained on him. All he was paying attention too was the small wound his bow gave him. He honestly couldn't remember the last time the bow had wounded him. It was so long ago; he couldn't help but feel the shock from it.

He remembered Palutena telling him he'd need to master the bow in order to get it to work right for him, but he honestly hadn't worked hard at it… The bow had seen him as worthy right from the start. So why it decided now that he wasn't worthy confused him.

Silently, he broke it apart again into the two swords and went through his movements slightly faster than before, still feeling everyone watching him. Pretending he was facing an enemy, he applied the basic combat rules and dodged, blocked, jumped ad even flew as he attacked. Coming from an arc, he fused the swords together again and spun the sacred bow quickly at his "enemy", feeling the lower blade scrape against his side.

Shocked, he gripped the bow tighter, stopping the spin. Experimentally, he picked a target on the far wall and called forth an arrow. He felt the bow shake in his hands and he hid his surprise as he let the arrow fly. It struck the target in the far corner.

He took a breath and set the bow down beside him. 'It's never done this before… It's always accepted me, so why is it rejecting me now? I don't understand Goddess…'

"You ok Pit?" Fox asked quietly, breaking the tension that was slowly rising up in the room.

"I don't know…" the angel replied sullenly, wings drooped. "I can't figure out what's wrong…"

Not knowing exactly what Pit meant, Falco spoke up, "You seemed to be doing great. Don't forget you've been on bed rest for a week and a half. You'd be amazed how fast things disappear. You'll get your edge back soon."

Pit smiled slightly, "Yeah… I hope so." He looked around at the others, all of whom were smiling at him with confidence. He frowned slightly, noticing Ike had left in the middle of his and Marth's training battle, though the prince didn't seem to mind much.

In fact, the prince moved toward him. "Hey, how about a small one on one? I won't push you too hard, that way you can get yourself back into things."

Pit grinned in response. Sure, the doctor had said no battling… but he didn't say a thing about sparring. "Sure. I'll spar with you."

"Great. I'll just block your attacks. I won't attack at all until you tell me to do so, alright?"

Taking up his bow once more, he split it into the swords once more and waited for Marth to fall into a defensive position. Pit lunged at the prince, determined to figure out the problem he was having with the bow.

True to his word, Prince Marth moved his sword to block each and every attack the angel put on him. Pit swiped his swords across the Altean's own sword, sending an awful reverberation through both of their weapons. Pit gave a growl of frustration and ducked low and swung his leg out, tripping the surprised prince.

Pit blinked as suddenly he was holding one of the swords to Marth's throat. He heard the others behind him saying he'd won and that he could get off of the other, but he didn't know what happened.

Had Marth had a deep scratch on his forehead before? He looked to his blades quickly and saw blood on the edges of both. Eyes widening, he looked the prince over quickly, finding a slash from both blades on his chest as well. Marth for his part looked calm and collected, though a bit surprised.

Pit practically flew off of his spar partner, dropping his swords as he did so. Fox's hand rested on Pit's shoulder as they both watched Falco and Meta Knight help the Altean up. "I'm sorry Marth! I don't know what came over me!"

"It's alright… Don't worry Pit…" Marth said with a forced smile. His eye showed that yes, the wounds were painful, but he truly didn't blame Pit. In fact, he looked like he knew something… but before Pit could ask, the prince was being lead to the infirmary.

Fox cleared his throat, "So, I hear you asked Zelda out on a date. Where you guys gonna go?"

Pit felt his face flush, "I don't know… I don't know much about "dates"… Where would you suggest?" He really did try to keep his voice from breaking, and from sounding desperate, but his voice was apparently rebelling against him.

"Hmm… Well, do you want it to be romantic or fun?" Fox asked, looking thoughtful.

"I don't know… Would Zelda like one more than the other? I really don't have a clue what I'm doing… I asked Satoshi a while back, but he said to just follow my nose. Whatever that meant…"

Fox blinked before letting out a laugh, "He said that? Wow… Uh, maybe you shouldn't ask Red for tips with girls eh? He's never been on a date that I've ever heard about… How about you ask Ike or Marth? Well, I don't know if either of them have had dates either, but it's worth a try…"

Pit felt his features darken at Ike's name. Really, he liked Ike. Ike was a good guy and was a good friend, but he couldn't keep his jealousy away. That day when they both asked Zelda, he felt unbelievably happy he'd gotten to her first. The thought of her being with someone else was hurting him.

The fact that she'd wanted to be with Link didn't dampen his spirits though, because he'd given her time to get over him while still being rational minded. At least, that had been Satoshi's advice. 'Maybe I should have just asked Fox what I should have done… I may not have had her when I asked…' he thought, feeling his heart pound.

"You ok?" Fox asked worriedly, seeing the angel's expression.

"Wha-? Yeah, I'm alright. Sorry, was just thinking. I don't think asking either of them would be a good idea… I just almost hurt Marth, and Ike isn't exactly happy with me right now…"

"Yeesh, what'd you do to Ike?"

"I asked Zelda first…" Fox's eyes widened at the admission.

"No way! I didn't see that one coming…" he said, just above a whisper. Pit nodded in reply, staring at the blood Marth had left behind.

"Well, Zelda is a princess. She probably expects romantic. So, why don't you surprise her with a fun date?" Fox said, breaking the sudden silence and making the captain jump.

"Do you think she'd like that?" he asked, nervousness in his voice. "I mean… I know it won't be perfect, but I want her to have a good time…"

"Sure she will. As stuck up as princesses seem, the love to have fun. Trust me on it, ok?" the fox grinned, closing his green eyes.

"Have you gone out with one before?" Pit asked, curious. He knew the fox had a girlfriend back home, but he didn't know much of his past.

"Yup. Krystal actually. She was the princess of an entire planet. She loves too just lay back and have fun. She says she doesn't really remember much of the role being princess, but she knows she had rules and responsibilities to follow every waking hour."

"Wow… I didn't know she was a princess…" he'd met her maybe once when the mansion held a party. Friends and family of everyone were invited. The mansion had met some pretty weird people that day, but no one complained. Pit had been so happy that day as Palutena had made a small appearance. Everyone had awed at her and Pit couldn't stop grinning.

"Yeah, I didn't either for a while. She'd kept it secret until one day she sat us all down and told us of the destruction of Cerinea, her planet. Peppy looked through the history on the planet and the next day was like a walking encyclopedia on it. It was pretty funny."

"So, fun place… Where's fun around here?" Pit asked, his eyes gazing at the floor in thought.

"Hmm… well, depends on what you think is fun. Take her to a theme park and go on some rides? Go out for a burger and hit the town? I dunno kid, it's your call."

"Oh… thanks Fox… I guess I really needed some encouragement," Pit said with a small smile.

"No problem. Next time, try not to beat someone up in a sparring session, eh?"

"Heh, I'll try my best… I don't know what came over me… One minute I knocked Marth to the ground, and then I was on top of him, a knife to his throat…" Pit mumbled, wings drooping. Fox gazed at him a moment before turning and leading them both to the exit.

"Well, I don't know. We'll figure out what happened later though. You have to set a date with Zelda."

/??/Scene Change/??/

Zelda put a hand to her head as she stared into the mirror. She felt like her head was being squashed by the killer migraine that wouldn't leave her alone. It'd been with her for a few days or so, though she'd taken headache medicine and kept her mouth shut. She instead focused on Pit in the infirmary, trying to forget the pounding in her skull.

Sheik had been fairly quiet recently as well. When she had asked him if he felt the migraine as well, he replied with a simple, "no… Zelda, please go lay down in a bed and sleep. You're hurting yourself by staying up so late…"

'He's been almost too quiet…' she thought, focusing on him. He seemed fine, just a bit reclusive. _"Sheik? Are you alright? You've been quiet all morning…"_

"_I'm fine princess. I don't wish to aggravate your headache,"_ he replied, sincerity in his voice.

"_Oh… thank you… but I'm ok. You don't need to be silent…"_

"_I do. Mental conversations are worse for headaches than normal ones,"_ he replied gently, mentally pushing her back. She sighed at him, knowing he wouldn't take no for an answer. Checking herself in the mirror once more, she moved out into the hall towards the cafeteria.

'I guess I'm going to be on my own today,' she thought to herself, smiling at a few of the others scattered through the mansion. The walk to the cafeteria was a bit of a long one, but she didn't mind. It allowed her some time to think.

'Pit's been released from the infirmary… I wonder what he plans to do?' she asked herself when she realized she was heading back to the infirmary out of habit. The past week had been one of routine. Head back to her room, change, accessorize, etc; go to the cafeteria if it was her turn, grab food and bring it back to the infirmary.

When she walked past the corridor leading to the infirmary, she froze, hearing something down near Doctor Mario's office. Curious, she walked down the hall.

"Are you sure you're alright Marth? Those cuts were pretty bad… the doc was only worried about the one on your head… But the other two are almost worse…" Falco's voice asked as she moved closer.

"I'm fine, honest," Marth responded, thought she heard something in his voice akin to tiredness or pain.

"Ok man, if you say so…" Falco said, backing off slightly. The two turned to face her when she was around five feet from them.

"What happened?" she asked, going to Marth and looking him over.

"Was training and I slipped up," he said with a small smile, an arm over his chest. She couldn't look away from the bandages on his forehead.

"Where else were you injured?" she asked, looking to Falco, who'd turned away.

"I was hit here, but I'm fine," he said, patting lightly on his chest. She couldn't see the bandages save for a tiny indent under his clothing. "Let's go get some food. I'm hungry!" he exclaimed with a broad smile.

She giggled at his words. He was always like that. He was like her brother sometimes… and he was so much like Link it was funny. His attitude was just so, different from what she'd expected from a prince. When he'd first arrived, sure, he was all business, but after he'd been there for awhile and lightened up, he'd spring into a few goofy moments.

He became the center of attention as soon as they walked into the cafeteria. Peach had jumped up from her spot near Samus and had practically bowled him over. Zelda merely quirked an eye at the mushroom princess' behavior. She had a boyfriend after all, who was giving Marth a strange look as Peach sat on top of him, making sure he was alright.

Marth was just stunned.

Zelda knelt down next to them, addressing Peach, "Um… Mario doesn't look like he appreciates your position Peach…" She waved silently at the others in the room, all of which were watching with amused expressions. Peach snapped her eyes behind her fairly quickly, spying Mario, who glared at the prince beneath her and she jumped up, arms in a defensive position.

Shaking her head, Zelda helped the prince to his feet and led him to a table. "Are you alright?" she asked, gazing at him curiously. He nodded slightly with a small smile forming on his lips.

"Yes, I'm fine. Thank you for the rescue attempt. I know she meant well, but she had all of her weight on my chest wound."

"No problem… I'm going to go grab some coffee, alright? Want anything?" she asked again, eyes hidden beneath her bangs.

"I'll take a coffee as well, please… I'd follow you, but I need to catch my breath it would seem," he replied, grinning at her. She blushed at his words, knowing exactly how they were meant to be taken. 'He just flirted with me! What is it with the guys all of a sudden!?' she exclaimed to herself mentally, cursing her migraine for the umpteenth time.

She left Marth at the table as she headed toward the coffee pot. She could feel the blush still on her face as she grasped a mug and poured the liquid into it. Putting in a small amount of sugar and cream, she repeated the process, leaving out the cream and sugar and moved back to the table.

Pit was suddenly in front of her, removing the mugs from her hands. "Hey Zelda… I'll bring these to the table, ok? Are you alright? You look sort of pale…" he asked, giving her a concerned look.

"Oh… I'm fine. Are you alright though? You've finally been allowed to leave the infirmary… Are you tired?" she retorted with just as much concern. Pit smiled at her.

"Yeah, I'm great. I don't know why the doctor kept me in there for so long…"

"Because you were wounded, that's why. Your wings didn't want to heal…" she said, touching one of the white appendages close to his back, making them twitch. The angel sighed, nodding slightly.

"Yeah… My wings have always been the spot that doesn't heal very fast. While in general, angels heal faster than humans; their wings are typically slower to heal. I see why he kept me, but I was getting so bored…"

Zelda bristled slightly, "Oh, were we not enough entertainment for you?"

Pit turned shocked and frightened eyes to her, "What? No… Zelda, I didn't mean it like that… I just wanted to move around more… I'm used to being able to fly around… not having the ability to do so was just bringing me down. I appreciated having you guys there… It made things so much more bearable…"

Zelda sighed, nodding as they reached the table Marth was at. He was laying his head on the table, one arm covering his head, the other beneath him over his chest. The prince was taking deep, calm breaths and seemed almost to be asleep. Not wanting to bother him, she turned to Pit.

"Pit…"

"Hey, uh… I want to take you somewhere…" he interjected, his blue eyes immediately finding the floor as his body tensed. "I… Do you want to go to the city? I'm not exactly sure what we'll do… But I'm sure we can find something…"

She felt her heart speed up, "Uh, sure… When… Do you want to go?"

"Uh… When's a good time? I'm free whenever…" he said meekly, still staring at the ground.

"How about tomorrow? We'll go early so we have more time to ourselves… Alright?" she asked, taking a deep breath. She caught sight of Marth's expression and almost laughed. He was grinning at her! Pit didn't seem to notice though as he stood straight and locked eyes with her again.

"Alright…" he said his voice as proud as he could manage before waving and moving toward the food line. Falco was grinning from further up, making her shake her head in wonder.

"He finally asked you, eh?" Marth asked, tilting his head up slightly.

"You knew?" she asked, quirking her brow.

"Yeah, he asked Satoshi for advice. Fox, Falco and I found out by overhearing on accident."

"Ah… How long has he been planning to ask me out?" she asked, surprised she hadn't caught it. She rubbed her temple, trying to dispel the pounding.

"A good month at least I think… Not too long. Are you happy princess?" he asked, giving her a look. She could only nod, wondering why he suddenly seemed so serious. "Good. Just making sure," he continued with a grin, laying his head back down.

She turned to watch Falco and Pit bicker in the line and shook her head. Just what had she gotten into?


	7. Romantic Attack

Thanks so much for the reviews guys!

To Celebaby, I realize now that its never said anywhere that Krystal is a princess. I honestly don't know where i read (or thought I read) that she was. Weird, but anyway, just please bear with the idea that she is, as I can't get it out now (I've thought she was since her appearance in Adventures)... I'll take your advice with the genre, but unfortunately, the spelling mistakes are probably going to happen. Until my laptop is fixed, I'm on my boyfriend's laptop, which doesn't have any writing programs except Notepad, which I don't know how to use, plus there are keys that don't work right. Such as the "e" button, the shift and the backspace (which is missing completely and you have to hit this soft spot just right for it to register). As for a beta, I would love to have one, but I'm not sure how to go about getting one, and if it costs money (through the site), its out of the question as I have none currently...

To Mewtrainer, the bow thing (as far as I know) is unique to my story. Pit is from the original Nintendo system, and so the whole storyline was basically dumbed down, and so simple, they probably couldn't put that in there even if they wanted to (which I'm sure you know). There were comics though I heard, but whether anything is in there, I have no idea. As for the Sheik thing, I wouldn't really want to be either him nor Zelda... I may include a back story on my take of their "joining" at som point, but I dunno. (I'm surprised no one's flamed me saying that Sheik is Zelda and is female. I understand he was probly meant to be, but I like this version better).

To Dark Revenge Angel, Interesting that my story and your Rpg sound similar... May you point out a few traits that are? Just out of curiosity. Unfortunately, I cannot email you, though if you add this story to "story alerts", the site can email you...

This chapter is short, but... On with the story!

?/?/?/?

Pit held Zelda close as they watched the sun set behind the mountains far off in the distance. The date had ultimately been a disaster, but he was fortunate as Zelda had laughed at all the chaos and overall had a grand time. After a fun bout at the burger place in the closest town, a long walk on the ocean beach and playing a few arcade games that loved eating money and giving no games, they ended up in each other's arms on the cliff face they currently resided on. They'd been there for almost an hour, and the sun was on its last legs for the day, casting beautiful reds, purples and oranges through the sky.

"Thank you Pit... Today was wonderful..." Zelda murmured almost so quietly he barely caught it. He grinned and tightened his hold on her slightly She sighed and snuggled into further into his embrace. Her eyes were drooping as sleep threatened to over take her. She would have fallen asleep earlier if it wasn't for that damned headache. But she felt better when he'd put his arms around her, slightly dispelling the throbbing in her head, though it was still there.

"Thank you Zelda..." he stated, looking back toward the ocean. He was truly happy, and he couldn't remember any other time he'd felt like this. Sure, he'd been happy many times before, but he'd never felt like this. Today, his feelings for her had intensified, and he loved the fact that hers seemed to have grown for him as well. "I don't want to have to move Zelda, but the suns almost down... We should probably head back..." he whispered, sighing with regret.

"A few more minutes..." she responded, enjoying the feel of contact. She felt Sheik grin at her laziness, and she rolled her eyes mentally. She wanted this moment to last forever, though she knew it was childish and greedy.

They stayed until dark had settled over the land and the air grew cold. Zelda was more asleep than awake as Pit lifted her and headed toward the mansion. She was light, allowing him to fly easily, cutting the time down. The air was giving him chills, something he wasn't used to, and a foreboding feeling had invaded his mind, prompting him to hurry. 'Has the Shadow come back? Am I just being paranoid? I can't tell anymore... That thing really messed up my senses... How can it evade like it does and pounce without the slightest inkling? Zelda had said she couldn't contact Sheik the first time, and no one else heard the battle, meaning it could separate us fairly easily, although it hasn't seemed to do that since... I don't get it!'

It didn't make any sense at all. The shadow creature could take most attacks, but when something (namely Sheik) had gotten stuck in it, it had left a shadowy ball of mush. But Fox's own version of the attack only slowed it down slightly. Zelda's light arrows apparently worked well, but she hadn't been able to get one on it since the first battle, and he was the apparent main target. It also hadn't used its strange energy very much...

He ducked low as a tree suddenly entered his vision, flying over him and the princess. Startled and more than slightly confused, he blinked in the direction it had come from, seeing none other than the black and purple creature glaring and hissing at him. Disbelieving and more than annoyed, he flew to a secluded are and set Zelda down gently before launching back toward the enemy, his swords at the ready.

He joined the blades to form his bow and called forth an arrow, eyes narrowing in distaste as he felt the bow quiver in silent rejection. The arrow struck the ground near the monster's "feet" in an explosive collision, making Pit's stomach flip as a wave of fear and nausea struck him. 'The bow is refusing my command! Why!? And why did that arrow have so much force behind it? That's not right...' he thought, breaking the bow and attacking with a flurry of strikes. He winced as his right blade caught his side, where it had scraped him before in the training room. The shadow merely continued swiping at him as if his attacks were nothing but flies.

Catching sight of something light in the corner of his eye, he jumped back, using his wings for momentum. The light arrow zipped past him a split second after and would have hit the creature dead on if not for its sudden disappearance. Cautious, Pit turned to face Zelda, who lowered her hands, a look of astonishment covering her expression.

The astonishment quickly turned to dread as the shadow grabbed her from behind and held her close to it. Fear constricted Pit's heart as he quickly moved toward the beast, twirling his blades as he went. The swipes did nothing, and Zelda was constantly pushed in front, causing him to alter his attack last moment.

Zelda, for her part, was trying her best to get free. Magic was glowing fiercely around her body and fire was lit in her eyes, telling Pit that if she ever got out of this embrace, the Shadow was going to be in a lot of pain. The shadow was spitting and hissing as if it were a cat, and though its dark body was pulsating with the magic, it held tightly.

"Let me go!" she yelled, kicking at the creature's stomach. She vaguely wondered how it was holding her up if Sheik and Fox could go through it, though it was pushed aside with the urgency she saw in Pit's eyes. He was terrified, and in turn, that terrified her. Thinking quickly as Pit spun his bow to get a quick hit at the thing's side, she called her magic forth and let out a burst of light, making it scream in what she hoped was agony. It dropped her and she fell into a defensive position, magic still flowing around her.

Pit jumped at the opportunity to attack it with out it hiding behind Zelda. The princess watched as the angel and creature exchanged blows, and it wasn't until she saw the bow scrape Pit's side, where he was apparently already bleeding, that she knew something wasn't right. As he jumped back to recoup, she surged forward, throwing light energy at it as quickly as she possibly could. 'He's not in tip top shape yet! He's only just recovered from the initial attack!' she thought, growling at the shadow, which hissed back at her.

_"Sheik! I need help. My magic is draining me, I need you to support me!"_ she mentally exclaimed. She didn't receive a response, which brought that fear she'd felt during their separation a week before back to the surface.

The creature's eyes glowed crimson, startling her. Before she knew it, it unleashed a wave of dark energy, and if Pit hadn't pulled his shield and covered her, it would have caught her. The angel was breathing heavily as he kept his weight against the shield to keep it upright. His wings were shaking, and she couldn't help but touch one, trying to calm it. Pit's eyes were wide and though they seemed to be relieved, they also showed his worry and fatigue.

"Are you alright?" he asked, his voice slurring slightly. He winced at the dryness in his throat, and hoped Zelda hadn't caught it. She nodded in response, her hand brought to just above her heart. "Good... I don't want you to be hurt..."

Zelda only nodded, her heart pounding hopelessly in her chest. His voice was weak sounding and choppy, and the sound struck her. "Hang in there Pit... We're going to beat this thing, alright? Just hold on..." she whispered, hugging him tightly. With a deep breath, she stood and jumped away from Pit in one fluid motion, making him jump in surprise and reach for her. Gathering what she could of her magic once more, she aimed and let it loose.

Pit watched as the bright light tore from Zelda's frame. The shadow screeched in agony somewhere in the background, but his eyes were only locked on Zelda. As the light faded out, the brown haired princess slumped, then collapsed. There was no sign of the shadow anywhere. Her skin was cool, and her breathing was shallow, but her face was flushed and she seemed mostly alright. Not wasting a moment, he picked her up and headed for the infirmary.

He passed many people on his way, such as Fox and Falco, Ike, Meta Knight and Marth. All of them stopped what they'd been doing and followed without question. Their treks were silent, but all of them didn't really care. One look at Zelda and they all knew this was serious. All of them were aware of the outing, and the fact Zelda had to be carried in, looking exhausted and half dead was not a good sign.

'Hang in there Zelda... just hang in there...' Pit thought as he set her down on one of the beds. He felt, rather than saw, Ike move to find the doctor or Mario.

The next hour passed slowly as they were all ushered out of the room. The double team worked silently on the other side of the door, and the small group waited almost silently, most sitting in chairs, a few sitting on the floor. "So... what happened Pit?" Fox asked, the silence unnerving him to the point of breaking it.

They watched Ness and Lucas run in and hurry behind the closed door, startling all of them.

"I wonder why they need the psychics..." Falco muttered before turning his eyes toward Pit.

"We were coming back and the shadow attacked... Zelda used a lot of magic and collapsed..." Pit said quietly, worry ebbing in his tone. His eyes were downcast and he couldn't explain just how he was feeling. 'What if they can't do anything? Please, Palutena... watch over her... make sure she's alright...' he thought, clenching his eyes closed. Silence reigned again as he tried to get his breathing back under control.

Ike was leaning against the wall, having decided the chair he'd sat in was fairly uncomfortable. His eyes were dark with worry, making Pit more than slightly wary of the mercenary. Fox was sitting against the wall, having decided he'd let the others take the chairs, and he seemed as if he were frightened, though it was held back behind his blank expression. Falco looked fairly similar, if he hadn't been twirling a pencil around nonchalantly. Meta Knight was staring at the door from his chair, his glowing yellow eyes narrowed slightly. Marth sat beside Pit, occasionally looking over to offer comforting smiles, though Pit could tell they were forced.

Another 30 minutes passed before the door finally opened again. Mario stepped out, a hand messaging his temple. He jumped slightly when he looked up, finding the others where he'd left them before. Pit jumped up, his wings shaking, "Is she ok?? Please... is Zelda alright?"

Mario put a hand out to stop the angel before he continued slinging questions, "She's... Well, I'll be honest. We almost lost her. Her-a magic, I'm assuming, was-a draining her physical self to keep itself-a going. Normally it would-a need to cut itself off, or I'm-a sure Sheik would help to stem it. For some-a reason however, it didn't, and as you-a brought her in, her magic was still pouring from her-a body. We called-a Ness and Lucas in to help us-a find where the magic was coming from-a in the mental sense and we had them cap it. Zelda however, is-a very exhausted. I believe the doctor is going to be-a monitoring her for some time. But now, Pit, let me have a look at you. You-a look like you're in-a shock..."

Pit stood, and followed Mario into another room. He sat still as the other took his temperature, checked his eyes and a few other things. Mario broke the silence a few minutes later, "So... What caused Zelda's jump in magic? And why do you look like you been in a fight?"

"We were coming home from our date... and the shadow attacked us again... I fought with it until Zelda started throwing magic at it, but her final attack I guess took a lot of energy, and she collapsed... Thankfully, the shadow was gone, so I brought her here as fast as I could..." his voice sounded strained, even to his own ears. Talking was taking a lot of energy and he felt like he had none to spare it. He jumped as suddenly there was a blanket on his shoulders and Mario smiled at him comfortingly.

"I must leave for now and help finish up with Zelda. I'll be back in a bit to check on you. I'll send the others in if you'd like..." at Pit's nod, the plumber left the room. Not long after, Fox, Falco, Meta Knight and Marth came in and sat down without a word. Ike was no where to be seen. It irked Pit, but he guessed it would be expected. The mercenary only came for Zelda's sake, not his. The others were here for both of them, which made him smile a bit.

It always felt good to know someone cared.


	8. Recovering

**Ok, so, I figured it was time for an update for this story to kind of jump start it... it's been nearly a year since the last posting. I'm so sorry for any who are faithful to SH! But, I have re-read through it, and I have found the story _really_ doesn't flow very easily. Another hiccup to fix at some point... but since I have no patience and I really want to get all of my stories updated (I'm having the worst trouble with my Transformers fics...) before the new year, I'm not going to worry about it right now. Also, this is a short little chapter. Kind of a filler chapter.**

**Side note... I'm shifting character eye colors... Nintendo has a weird habbit of making everyone's eyes blue... so I'm going to change a few I think could stand different coloring (cause I like calling attention to eye color and I can't do that if everyone has a uniform color). So, yeah... tell me if this is a problem... I don't foresee it as one, but you never know.**

**Oh, and I haven't done a disclaimer (not that it's really needed, but whatever). So yeah, I don't own it, nor am I making moneys off of it. Tis only for fun ^.^**

**Ok, onto the main bit!**

///

_ Blip. Blip. Blip._

Zelda groaned as awareness hit her. The lights were way to loud and the sounds were way to bright. '_ugh... something like that anyway...'_ she thought, squinting as she opened her eyes. The infirmary room was becoming a very familiar place these last few weeks... she was beginning to memorize every little characteristic.

"Zelda?" Mario's voice made her jolt and she let out a silent curse as the throbbing in her head hit her full force. He was next to her, taking her temperature carefully. "How do you feel princess?"

"Ugh..." she vocalized, squeezing her eyes shut again. "What happened to land me in here again?" Her mind felt muddle and sluggish and she couldn't piece together much that had happened before waking up. She did remember she'd been on a date with Pit...

"Pit says you were both attacked on the way home... Do you remember anything of it?" his voice was even, but she could see concern in his light brown eyes. Now that she was reminded, she could vaguely remember Pit crouching behind his shield trying to protect her... and she'd used a lot of energy...

_"Sheik?"_ she called in their mind. She could feel his presence, but he seemed exhausted. _"Are you alright?"_

_ "Zelda? What happened?"_ he replied, his consciousness groggy and out of focus. She sent a wave of comfort to him, trying to wake him up as gently as she could. "I sort of remember..." she told Mario, who had frowned at the lack of response. "Um... can I have some sort of breakfast?"

He blinked at her for a moment before letting a small laugh loose, though the concern never left his eyes. "You'll be wanting a small dinner then. It's almost 9 pm..." Zelda felt her jaw slacken and she mentally scolded herself for looking so undignified, but Sheik soothed her self-consciousness fairly quickly. "You've been out for about two days. Not surprising considering how much magic you'd used. You were touch and go for a while there. I'll be right back with a light meal for you."

She watched him leave, feeling Sheik's own curiosity and surprise at the news. _"Just how much magic did I use?"_ she asked, looking to the window on the other side of the room. _"I didn't think I'd used much more than I had previously..."_

_"I am unsure princess... I have an impression of you calling for more magic from me, but I am unsure as to what occurred. It is very alarming at any rate... From how weak our magic is collectively, I believe the doctor had his hands full trying to keep us alive..."_ his voice still sounded groggy, and almost far away, but he was a calm presence on her suddenly fearful emotions.

_"Goodness..." _she replied, watching a few birds outside.

"How are you both holding up?" a feminine voice made Zelda jump. Peach was smiling at her softly, but that same worried glimmer was present in her blue eyes as it was in Mario's. "Mario mentioned you were awake, and I can tell by that faraway gaze that Sheik is awake as well. Do either of you need anything?" Peach was one of the only ones who spoke to Zelda as if both she and Sheik were both there.

"Hello Peach..." Zelda greeted with a small nod of her head. "I think all we need is some dinner. And, it probably wouldn't hurt to use the washracks either..." Sheik chuckled quietly in the back of her mind and she sent him a wave of amusement.

"Do you need assistance? Or do you think you can walk?" the blond princess asked cheerfully. Zelda, who, having shared a mind with Sheik as long as she had, couldn't help the snicker at the first question, earning a confused glance from Peach.

"Sorry..." Zelda said, waving it off. "It was one of those "mind is in dark places" moments." At the continuing confused look, she sighed and elaborated, "You asked if I need assistance to the washracks. I immediately thought in a plebian mind set and construed it as you asking if I wanted you to accompany for less... decent, acts."

Peach almost looked horrified, prompting a hearty laugh from Zelda, and Sheik's own mental laugh. She'd even thrown Sheik off at the explanation. Two for one. _"Goodness, I hope I'm not _that_ corrupting..."_ Sheik said quietly and Zelda mentally rolled her eyes at him. He was probably the most honorable man out there and rarely ever thought dirty, but when he did, it usually stuck. For a long time.

"I think I can make it to the washracks Peach, thank you..." Zelda continued after a moment, sitting up slowly with a barely concealed wince. The Mushroom Princess stayed close to her though, just in case she _couldn't_ handle the walk.

Her body ached in strange places, and her head was pounding. Even Sheik seemed affected by the after effects of whatever happened to them, as he retreated slightly in their mind, seeming to be just as tired as he'd been when he'd first come too. She cursed to herself, as her balance wobbled and her spine sent a wave of pain through her. Sheik had cringed as well.

Even her older wound, the cut on her arm, stung like fire at that point.

She was about half way to the other room when her strength left her and she collapsed into Peach, who was waiting patiently and caught her easily from behind. "Easy now," she said quietly, moving forward with the Hyrulian Princess half draped in her arms. She set her down in the bathroom, and quietly turned and stood outside the door. "Tell me when you're done or if you need help."

_'That was pathetic... I feel like I haven't walked in a year...'_ she thought to herself, washing her hands and face after a few minutes. Sheik was asleep again in their mind before she finished. "I'm done Peach... I don't think I can walk back to the bed..." her voice was small and she cringed. She hadn't felt so weak in a very long time.

Without a word, the other princess entered and helped her back to the bed. Mario had arrived with a small sandwich and had set it on the bed-side table, and was presumably in the medical office doing something. Peach helped her into the bed and propped her upright so she could eat, and Zelda smiled at the other's actions. Peach was so motherly, it was cute.

"Thank you Peach," she said.

The other gave her a surprised look followed by a serene smile, "Oh its no problem Zelda. Now, I'll let you have at your food. I'll be in the office if you need anything." She left before Zelda could say anything else.

With a small smile, Zelda reached for her sandwich. Turkey with cheddar and swiss, all the trimmings on sourdough. Not her personal favorite, but still good nonetheless. As she brought it closer, she nearly dropped the plate into her lap and she nearly let out a squeak when another hand caught it for her.

Looking up, as the arm had mysteriously come from above her, she giggled at seeing Pit, hovering quietly above her. He was giving her a warm smile that made her melt. He was also not alone. There was a shadow beside her and when she looked closer, she realized Marth and Fox were sitting against her bed, side by side. All three looked fairly content. Fox looked up at her and brought a finger to his muzzle, making a "shush" sound. Marth clarified, "We're not supposed to be in here."

Pit lightly landed beside her and gave her a hug so light she wasn't sure it was actually happening. "They've kept us out of here all this time. But we saw Mario leave, so we knew you woke up. Peach is letting us stay here. Mario'd shoo us out though if he knew. But I... we wanted to see you."

"Thank you..." she grinned leaning further into the light hug. His arms tightened slightly around her, taking her move as an ok. Marth and Fox were making faces at them, but they both ignored them. They were ok and they were together, meaning everything was ok.


End file.
